Ebola: Britain has NO plans to screen travellers for deadly virus

THERE are NO plans to screen travellers entering Britain for the deadly Ebola virus, health officials have revealed.

The unprecedented Ebola outbreak has claimed more than 3,400 lives since March [PA/AP]

As more than 100 Army medics prepare to travel to Sierra Leone to tackle the epidemic, Public Health England (PHE) said the country has "robust, well-developed and well-tested NHS systems for managing unusual infectious diseases."

A PHE spokesman said: "There are no plans to introduce entry screening for Ebola in the UK. This would require the UK to screen every returning traveller, as people could return to the UK from an affected country through any port of entry. This would be huge numbers of low-risk people.

"PHE has provided UK Border Force with advice on the assessment of an unwell patient on entry to UK."

The unprecedented Ebola outbreak has claimed more than 3,400 lives since March and has a 90 per cent fatality rate.

A medical exercise takes place by 22 Field Hospital at the Army Medical Services Training Centre [PA ]

Since then it has become an escalating concern to the rest of the world.

British nurse William Pooley, who contracted the deadly virus in Sierra Leone, survived after he was treated at the Royal Free Hospital in London.

Dr Brian McCloskey, director of global health at PHE said British hospitals had a "proven record" of dealing with imported infectious diseases.

"If an Ebola case is repatriated to, or detected in, the UK they would receive appropriate treatment in an isolation unit, with all appropriate protocols promptly activated," he said.

"UK hospitals have a proven record of dealing with imported infectious diseases."

This comes as scientists - just a few days ago - warned that Ebola could reach British shores by October 24.

The startling prediction was made after experts analysed the pattern of the spread of the disease, along with airline traffic data.

Meanwhile, staff from 22 Field Hospital, normally based in York, are expected to begin their humanitarian operation in west Africa within the next few weeks.

They will staff a field hospital set up specifically to treat medics who have caught the disease - not members of the general public - and will operate a 12-bed facility.

Extensive training exercises has seen medics in full protective suits, with simulated casualties in make-up, at Strensall Barracks in York.

The exercise, which is expected to last two weeks, has been running for 13 hours every day.

Medics will staff a field hospital specifically set up to treat medics who have caught Ebola [PA ]

Casualties with symptoms or suspicion of the Ebola virus, complete with realistic make-up and prosthetic veins, present themselves to the teams who are dressed in full protective plastic suits and face masks.

An Army spokeswoman said: "They are going through all their procedures and getting attuned to wearing their personal protective equipment, working in quite hot temperatures.

"The training centre, which was geared up to be a replica of Camp Bastion in Afghanistan, can vary the temperature and it is warm in there today.

"The casualties come in and the medics test their procedures and working through using their protective equipment."

This comes after a Spanish nurse became the first person in the world to contract the life-threatening infection outside Africa.

International Development Secretary Justine Greening said the Government would continue to review the issue of tighter travel restrictions after a Spanish nurse contracted Ebola and three others were placed under quarantine, at a Madrid hospital.

She told BBC News: "It doesn't change the assessment of the risk to the UK.

"But what it does show is why we're right to be working with governments as we are in Sierra Leone to help them combat this disease where it's spreading so rapidly now."